Zou Fang took a deep breath, stepping forward. All eyes were on him.
His hands moved with certainty as he reached for the one plant that no one dared to touch—the twisted, sickly-looking, dark green leaf with black veins running through it.
The moment he picked it up, the entire crowd gasped in horror.
Even the old elder, who had remained impassive throughout most of the trials, narrowed his eyes sharply.
"Boy," the elder said, voice laced with caution, "do you have any idea what you are doing?"
Zou Fang, still feeling the pressure of Wei Long's words in his head, simply nodded and walked toward Angola.
Whispers exploded among the disciples.
"Is he insane?!"
"That thing is toxic! It'll kill the lizard!"
"No… If it were truly lethal, the elder wouldn't have allowed it to be here… But still…!"
Angola, the massive lizard, tilted its head slightly, staring at Zou Fang with those massive reptilian eyes.
A flicker of something… curiosity? Recognition?
